Russia in Iraq --
the Hidden Presence
April 4, 2003
By Toby Westerman
Copyright 2003 International News Analysis Today
www.inatoday.com
A leading Muslim organization in Russia with close ties to the Russian government is calling for a "holy war" against the U.S. The Central Islamic Leadership only once before issued a call for a "holy war" - when Hitler invaded the USSR during WWII.
More than 3,000 Muslim congregations with a combined membership of 20 million believers belong to the Central Islamic Leadership. The chairman of the organization, Grand Mufti Talgat Tadschuddin, is urging his followers to use their money to buy weapons and supplies for use against the U.S. and in support of Iraq, according to a report in the German newsmagazine, Der Spiegel.
Although the Russian Federation is currently fighting against Islamic militants within its borders, Moscow has close relations with "established" Muslim organizations throughout Russia.
Since the Soviet era, Moscow has exercised considerable influence in the selection of leading Muslim clerics in Russia. Der Spiegel describes the Central Islamic Leadership organization as "loyal-to-the-state," and, as a consequence of Russian influence, Tadschuddin's proclamation is not likely to run counter to Moscow's wishes.
Despite Russian Justice Ministry warnings to Muslims against the illegal purchase of arms or recruitment of fighters, the Ministry will permit "moral and material help for brother believers in Iraq," according to Der Spiegel.
The "moral and material help for brother believers" could potentially express itself in terms of firepower, despite Russian Justice Ministry protestations.
Evidence is emerging which supports long-held contentions that Russia violated the arms sanctions placed against the Saddam Hussein regime following the end of the first Gulf war. Illegal arms supplies, which once found their way to Saddam's military, may well flow to guerrilla forces displeased with the prospect of a U.S. military administration in post-Saddam Iraq.
Moscow's persistent denial of arms sales to Saddam is becoming increasingly
unbelievable following the destruction of two advanced
U.S. Abrams M1 tanks by Russian-made "Kornet" missiles.
The Kornet is a portable missile capable of being laser-guided, and has a range of over three miles. Iraq is believed to have purchased some 1500 of the weapons, according to a recent report by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
The exact route the Kornets took to Iraq is unknown, but many speculate that friends of Russia, including Belarus, Ukraine, or Syria acted as middlemen.
Russia is also believed to have sold night-vision equipment and "GPS-Jammer" devices to Saddam's military.
The Russian GPS-Jammers may be responsible for some of the civilian casualties in the Iraq conflict. Because the GPS-Jammers can interfere with the remote guidance of U.S. missiles, it is possible that a missile could be deflected from its intended target and mistakenly hit a civilian location.
Although the U.S. has methods to counter the Jammers, the use of the Jammers could still result in a missile going up to 50 feet off target, and possibly cause unintended damage, Der Spiegel reported.
Moscow's influence in Iraq may not come to an end with the destruction of Saddam's dictatorship. Forces hostile to a U.S. military administration in Iraq will be searching for friends and sources for military hardware.
At least one anti-Saddam guerrilla group has pledged to fight against the establishment of a U.S. military administration in Iraq following Saddam's ouster.
Ayatollah Mohammed al Hakim, leader of the Iran-based Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), has already vowed "to resist foreign domination" if a non-Iraqi government assumes control of the nation after Saddam's fall from power.
The SCIRI has a force of 8,000 guerrillas, many of whom are already operating in Iraq. Al Hakim and his organization work closely with Iran, a good friend of Russia.
Iraq has a long border with Iran, as it does with Syria, a nation which has expressed its hostility to U.S. intervention against the Saddam Hussein regime.
Long borders mean difficulty in halting arms flow to disaffected groups.
Russian Muslims are already raising money for weapons. Tadschuddin's ominous boast that "Russian Muslims have an effective lever against the U.S.A.," may be fulfilled not in defense of Saddam's dying regime, but against U.S. troops attempting to rebuild long-suffering Iraq.
Copyright 2003
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